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Shade Creek Watershed Association Awarded EPA Environmental Education Grant

Release Date: 8/15/2002
Contact Information: Bonnie Smith, (215) 814-5543

Bonnie Smith, (215) 814-5543

PHILADELPHIA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced 20 environmental education grants awarded throughout the mid-Atlantic region. In Central City, EPA awarded $7,000 to the Shade Creek Watershed.

The Somerset County program that EPA is funding is called Environmental Awareness in the Shade Creek Watershed.

The goal of the project is to raise awareness of environmental issues in this region, encourage critical thinking about regional environmental issues, and encourage youth to take an active role in their communities. Residents of the Dark Shade Watershed were abandoned when coal companies closed down, left with the devastating effect of the mining operations. The project will use hands-on investigation to encourage youth in the area to investigate and implement solutions to these environmental problems through presentations, public meetings, and local news reporting.

“These environmental education programs will help students in Somerset County begin to find solutions for important local environmental challenges,” said mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Donald S. Welsh.

Since 1992, EPA has provided more than $2 million annually in funding to local organizations and schools and has awarded a total of 1,700 grants. These grass-roots grants fund educational programs in nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and governmental agencies supporting a wide range of environmental issues for citizens of all ages.

To find out more about EPA’s environmental education grants and online resources for communities, educators, and children, check out EPA’s website at http:www.epa.gov/epahome/students.htm.